Beyond The Headline

Textbooks by Apple

2012-01-23T07:54:00.000-05:00

The future of education:

2012 Predictions

2012-01-16T06:44:00.000-05:00

Following a recap of my predictions for 2011, here are my 8 predictions for 2012:

1) Obama wins re-election in a decisive manner over Mitt Romney. Although the polls are predicting a toss up or an Obama loss, I believe that the president runs a solid campaign and an improving economy are backdrops to his re-election.

2) A third party candidate will add an additional wrinkle to the 2012 campaign season, maybe Ron Paul?? Democrats on the whole regain some ground lost in 2010 election as the Tea Party comes under increased scrutiny.

3) Economic inequality will continue to dominate headlines in 2012. Tax reform momentum will gain steam as an avenue to remedy inequality that has returned to the levels last seen during the Great Depression.

4) Apple will have a blowout earnings report in late January and rumors will begin to swirl regarding the third version of the iPad, the next iPhone, and a new device that will re-invent the consumption of television content.

5) Cloud service will continue to dominate technology headlines and subscription services will grow in availability as consumers embrace the ability to choose between subscribing to content along with the option to purchase content a-la-crate.

6) The Android system will be negatively impacted by two forces. First, companies like Amazon will continue to tweak and modify the system due to security concerns and the need to provide a product more in line with Apple's offerings. Second, software virus concerns will continue to haunt the Android brand and it will amplify the inability for Android to break into the educational, corporate, and medical arenas with the same success Apple has enjoyed.

7) The value proposition for colleges will continue to come into question as the job market stays weak and the cost of secondary education continues to rise. Online and technical colleges will continue to grow in popularity as they offer marketable skills without the price tag of 4 year universities.

8) The great bond market bull market will slowly end and equities will return to favor. Although the stock market will remain volatile, large-cap, dividend paying US companies will outperform as money shifts from bonds to stocks.

2011 Prediction Recap

2012-01-09T07:05:00.001-05:00

At the beginning of this year I made 11 predictions for the upcoming year. Here are the grades:

1) The global economic worry of 2010 was the shaky balance sheets of European countries. The global economic worry of 2011 will be the unstable balance sheets of US States.
Grade = C
The European economy continued to be the main worry of 2011 even though the balance sheets of American states are starting to get more focus, specifically the sustainability of pension plans.

2) Global tensions will stay in the headlines with Iran, North Korea, and Pakistan continuing to dominate the news stories however cyber crimes will gain more press as people worry about a debilitating financial attack.
Grade = A
Attacks on the Canadian Government, Google, and PlayStation's online network highlighted a cyber attack filled 2011

3) The Republicans ran and won in the mid-term elections on the principle of deficit reduction (then pushed for a tax cut that added $700 billion to the deficit???). In 2011 it will become extremely clear that campaign promises will go unfulfilled and they have no serious plan or intention to reduce the deficit.
Grade =A
Congress utterly failed to pass meaningful deficit reduction and Republicans were unwilling to budge on any sort of revenue to help to provide a balanced approach to deficit reduction

4) The economic landscape will begin to show real signs of improvements in 2011. Unemployment will remain high but it will be mainly due to new people entering the workforce due to improved prospects. There will be meaningful private sector job creation.
Grade = A
The unemployment rate recently dropped to 8.6% and we have now experienced 10 straight months of gains in private sector jobs.

5) The student loan business will be in focus for deceptive practices in the same way the mortgage lenders have been scrutinized recently. Additionally, for-profit colleges will be in the cross-hairs of Washington for increased legislation due to their sales practices.
Grade = B+
The consumer bureau is now investigating private loan companies in response to a provision in the Dodd/Frank bill. Overall scrutiny of these companies is increasing regarding their advertising practices and financial tactics.

6) Apple will continue to make major strides in the smartphone and tablet industries. A iPhone for Verizon and a second generation iPad will be the highlights of a stellar 2011. Multiple news stories will focus on corporations and educational institutions utilizing the iPad with great success. No other company will come close to the sales numbers of the iPad with their tablet attempts.
Grade = A+
92% of Fortune 500 companies are using or testing iPads and the iPhone for Verizon and now Sprint have been huge hits. Over 40 million iPads have been sold to date far outstripping other tablet competitors.

7) 2011 will continue what will be regarded in the future as the "Decade of the App". Buying software a-la-carte will replace the old method and iTunes will lead this category long into the future.
Grade = A
Little surprise here. iTunes and the Apple app store continue to dominate.

8) With gas prices rising the Chevy Volt and the Nissan Leaf will be major news stories as the electric car becomes a reality in many homes across America.
Grade =C-
Although receiving a decent amount of press, the sales to date have been lackluster.

9) The sports headlines will be dominated by the potential for lockouts in either the NFL or NBA. Sports teams will continue to have difficulty filling seats as the convenience of watching at home in surround sound HDTV trumps the experience of being at the game for many fans.
Grade = A
A potential lockout in the NFL and a lockout that will cause a shortened NBA season dominated headlines. Teams are also publicly beginning to investigate options to make the experience of being in the stadium more enjoyable than watching at home

10) The best place to invest in 2011 will be large-cap, dividend paying, US equities. This group has underperformed recently and it will see a resurgence in 2011.
Grade = B
Large cap dividend paying stocks only slightly outperformed the broader market in 2011.

11) President Obama will see his approval rating rise sharply in 2011. The Republicans will spend the year attempting to find a unifying force to lead them in the 2012 presidential election. Mitt Romney and Sarah Palin's names along with many others will be tossed around but by the end of the year it will be clear that the Republicans have no viable candidate that can deny Obama re-election.
Grade = C
Obama's approval rating this year has fallen from 48% to 43%, although I was correct that the Republicans would toss out many candidates and have difficulty finding one who could defeat Obama (the polls now show a toss-up or an Obama win for all possible 2012 match-ups).

Coming soon...the 2012 predictions...

The New Economy

2011-12-26T07:38:00.000-05:00

Three of the most innovative American companies in the world today are Amazon, Apple, and Google.

The Economist magazine recently noted that Apple, Amazon, and Google together employ 113,000 people--which is less than 1/3rd as many as a single American success-story from the prior generation, GM, employed in 1980.

The economy is changing and with it comes a new set of employment challenges.

Absurdity

2011-12-19T06:57:00.002-05:00

Hilarious:

The Crazy Ones

2011-12-12T07:44:00.001-05:00

Steve Jobs on the Crazy Ones:

PEOPLE ARE AWESOME

2011-12-05T06:56:00.000-05:00

Title of the video says it all:

Social Media

2011-11-28T07:17:00.000-05:00

Stunning:

Driverless Car

2011-11-21T07:07:00.003-05:00

A crazy concept that could soon become reality:

New Series - Moonshiners

2011-11-14T06:46:00.002-05:00

All new Discovery Channel show:

7 Billion

2011-11-07T07:16:00.000-05:00

The world at 7 billion:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-15391515

iCloud

2011-10-31T06:18:00.001-04:00

The future???

Stunning the Music World

2011-10-24T07:15:00.001-04:00

Blind and Autistic and a stunning talent:

380,000 Legos

2011-10-17T09:05:00.003-04:00

Simply amazing:

Steve Jobs

2011-10-14T06:08:00.002-04:00

The complete interview from 60 Minutes:

60 Minutes - Steve Jobs

Online Convention

2011-10-10T06:37:00.000-04:00

The future of politics:

American Elect

New Showtime Documentary

2011-10-03T06:45:00.001-04:00

Army/Navy Football Documentary:

Rising Power

2011-09-26T07:41:00.001-04:00

Women and Leadership Positions:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/lesliebradshaw/2011/08/04/why-women-having-a-seat-at-the-table-is-not-enough/

BREAKAWAY WEALTH

2011-09-19T06:21:00.000-04:00

A must read:

http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2011/09/wp-report-on-breakaway-wealth/

Higher Ed Change

2011-09-12T09:39:00.005-04:00

The Master’s is now the fastest-growing degree:

The New Bachelor's

iPads in Cost-Cutting Move

2011-09-05T09:33:00.004-04:00

How a small town is using some new technology to save some cash:

iPad as a cost saver

Deficit

2011-08-29T09:32:00.003-04:00

Every wondered how it got so big:

Deficit

We'll Always

2011-08-22T07:09:00.002-04:00

The newest iPad commercial:

Summer Camp

2011-08-15T09:28:00.001-04:00

You won't believe how some people are arriving at summer camp:

Summer Camp

Regan's Tax Increases

2011-08-08T06:17:00.000-04:00

Look who the Democrats are using as an ally:

Democratic Ally

Vegas Novelty Bets

2011-08-01T07:15:00.001-04:00

Want to bet on the Oscars? It might be legal in Vegas very soon:

Vegas Novelty Bets

Obesity Rates in US

2011-07-25T07:05:00.007-04:00

Troubling news:

Adult obesity rates increased in 16 states during the past year, and none of the 50 states showed any decline in their rates of obesity, a study shows.

Obesity rates have doubled in seven states since 1995 and increased by 90% in 10 other states; 22 states saw obesity rates increase by as much as 80%, the report shows.

The state with the lowest obesity rate today, Colorado, would actually have had the highest rate in 1995, according to the study.

From: http://www.webmd.com/diet/news/20110707/obesity-rates-are-increasing-in-16-states

NOW

2011-07-18T06:21:00.000-04:00

Conan

2011-07-11T06:53:00.002-04:00

A spectacular commencement speech:

The Future of Studying

2011-07-05T07:05:00.001-04:00

iPad in the classroom:

The Future of the Book

2011-06-27T07:05:00.004-04:00

Textbook of the future???

Viral Images

2011-06-20T07:05:00.001-04:00

The images that went viral in 2010:

http://thefuturebuzz.com/2010/08/02/viral-images-2010/

Modern Man

2011-06-13T07:39:00.000-04:00

George Carlin:

3 Things

2011-06-06T14:45:00.003-04:00

What do you learn when the world flashes before your eyes:

A $6,400 Toilet

2011-05-30T07:28:00.001-04:00

In case you were interested in what $6,000 buys you in a toilet:

http://kohler.com/numi/#comfort.html

Rent v Buy

2011-05-23T07:24:00.002-04:00

A great chart depicting the state of the rent vs buy debate in cities all across the nation:

http://explore.trulia.com/datavis/rentvsbuy/Q2-2011/

Surprise, Surprise

2011-05-16T08:29:00.003-04:00

The rich are getting richer:

http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2011/04/12/surprise_surprise_rich_get_richer/?p1=Well_MostPop_Emailed3_HP

iPad II

2011-05-09T07:01:00.004-04:00

The newest iPad has a redesigned ad campaign to accompany its launch:

Where Americans are Moving

2011-05-02T06:55:00.000-04:00

The newest census data has some striking info about the changing landscape of the American population:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_thelookout/20110330/ts_yblog_thelookout/new-census-data-shows-which-areas-of-america-are-growing-shrinking

Wisconsin

2011-04-25T06:17:00.003-04:00

All the talk of the stripping of union rights in Wisconsin has led to a large movement to attempt to recall the Republicans in power. Check out a comercial from the creators of the movement:

Rally

2011-04-18T06:30:00.001-04:00

Amazing tennis rally:

A gallon

2011-04-11T07:34:00.001-04:00

What do our favorite products cost per gallon??

Might make you re-think that gas is expensive...

http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Gallons-on-Gallons-575x852.jpg

My Blackberry

2011-04-04T07:07:00.001-04:00

Absolutely hilarious:

What is Typical?

2011-03-28T06:58:00.000-04:00

National Geographic:

7 Billion: Are You Typical? — National Geographic Magazine @ Yahoo! Video

Ripping Paper??

2011-03-21T07:05:00.000-04:00

I wish I found it this funny:

Unequal

2011-03-14T07:03:00.000-04:00

Quite the collection of charts:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_thelookout/20110223/ts_yblog_thelookout/separate-but-unequal-charts-show-growing-rich-poor-gap

Middle Class in the USA

2011-03-07T07:01:00.000-05:00

Great parody video:

Middle Class

2011-02-28T07:26:00.006-05:00

In 1988, the income of an average American taxpayer was $33,400, adjusted for inflation. Fast forward 20 years, and not much had changed: The average income was still just $33,000 in 2008, according to IRS data.

Meanwhile, the richest 1% of Americans -- those making $380,000 or more -- have seen their incomes grow 33% over the last 20 years, leaving average Americans in the dust.

From: http://money.cnn.com/2011/02/16/news/economy/middle_class/index.htm

Awesome

2011-02-21T19:09:00.004-05:00

Inspirational. It's a long video but it is well worth it:

Family Feud

2011-02-14T09:05:00.000-05:00

A clip for the ages:

It's Here

2011-02-09T06:55:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow the iPhone goes on sale at Verizon stores all across the country:

Greatest Mini Golf

2011-02-07T07:53:00.000-05:00

Could be the greatest mini golf shot ever:

Upscale ZipCar

2011-02-02T07:45:00.000-05:00

BMW and Mercedes are testing the idea of CarSharing (think ZipCar) in Europe:

http://www.luxist.com/2010/12/30/mercedes-and-bmw-test-car-sharing/

Walking Speed = Life Span?

2011-01-31T07:39:00.000-05:00

Quite the study:

http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/health/blog/dailydose/2011/01/slow_walkers_do.html?p1=Upbox_links

Quite the View

2011-01-24T06:51:00.000-05:00

If you are in the market for a penthouse, and have a couple million to spare:

http://www.luxist.com/2010/12/30/eight-dreamy-penthouses-for-sale/

Free Diamond Rings

2011-01-21T07:26:00.001-05:00

All for 6 inches of snow???

Find out how: http://money.cnn.com/2010/12/30/smallbusiness/snow_jewelry_full_refunds/

Holidays by the Numbers

2011-01-19T07:02:00.002-05:00

Quite the graphic on the 2010 Holiday season:

http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/holidays_infographic.jpeg

Most Expensive Things Sold At Auction 2010

2011-01-17T07:24:00.000-05:00

Get out your checkbook (and your friends, and your familes, and your whole town, and pool it all together):

http://www.luxist.com/2010/12/30/most-expensive-things-sold-at-auction-2010/

Blizzard of 2010: Social Networking

2011-01-14T06:42:00.000-05:00

The potential to address mother nature with social networking:

http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2010/12/use-social-media-to-escape-snowmageddon/68613/

2010 Quiz

2011-01-07T06:34:00.000-05:00

How well did you pay attention to the news in 2010:

http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2010/12/27/quiz-year-in-review.html

11 for 2011

2011-01-03T05:30:00.002-05:00

Here are my 11 predictions for 2011.

Please use the comments section to let me know what you think of my predictions and most importantly add your own predictions for the coming year.

1) The global economic worry of 2010 was the shaky balance sheets of European countries. The global economic worry of 2011 will be the unstable balance sheets of US States.

2) Global tensions will stay in the headlines with Iran, North Korea, and Pakistan continuing to dominate the news stories however cyber crimes will gain more press as people worry about a debilitating financial attack.

3) The Republicans ran and won in the mid-term elections on the principle of deficit reduction (then pushed for a tax cut that added $700 billion to the deficit???). In 2011 it will become extremely clear that campaign promises will go unfulfilled and they have no serious plan or intention to reduce the deficit.

4) The economic landscape will begin to show real signs of improvements in 2011. Unemployment will remain high but it will be mainly due to new people entering the workforce due to improved prospects. There will be meaningful private sector job creation.

5) The student loan business will be in focus for deceptive practices in the same way the mortgage lenders have been scrutinized recently. Additionally, for-profit colleges will be in the cross-hairs of Washington for increased legislation due to their sales practices.

6) Apple will continue to make major strides in the smartphone and tablet industries. A iPhone for Verizon and a second generation iPad will be the highlights of a stellar 2011. Multiple news stories will focus on corporations and educational institutions utilizing the iPad with great success. No other company will come close to the sales numbers of the iPad with their tablet attempts.

7) 2011 will continue what will be regarded in the future as the "Decade of the App". Buying software a-la-carte will replace the old method and iTunes will lead this category long into the future.

8) With gas prices rising the Chevy Volt and the Nissan Leaf will be major news stories as the electric car becomes a reality in many homes across America.

9) The sports headlines will be dominated by the potential for lockouts in either the NFL or NBA. Sports teams will continue to have difficulty filling seats as the convenience of watching at home in surround sound HDTV trumps the experience of being at the game for many fans.

10) The best place to invest in 2011 will be large-cap, dividend paying, US equities. This group has underperformed recently and it will see a resurgence in 2011.

11) President Obama will see his approval rating rise sharply in 2011. The Republicans will spend the year attempting to find a unifying force to lead them in the 2012 presidential election. Mitt Romney and Sarah Palin's names along with many others will be tossed around but by the end of the year it will be clear that the Republicans have no viable candidate that can deny Obama re-election.

10 for 2010 Recap

2010-12-23T06:02:00.001-05:00

At the beginning of 2010 I posted 10 predictions for the upcoming year. Here is my report card:

1) The 2010 mid-term elections will offer little change to the makeup of Congress. Although some believe that the Republicans will grab a massive number of seats, I think that when the dust settles, things will be little changed.

C+
The Republicans gained 63 house seats and picked up 6 senate seats. They now control the House but they did fail to gain control of the Senate.

2) The trade in gold is crowded and seems eerily familiar to the bullishness surrounding crude oil in late 2007 when it was trading at $147 a barrel. I believe that long term gold is a great trade, but in the precious metals space, silver, copper, platinum and other precious metals will outperform gold.

A-
Funds that track Gold were up ~25% this year. In comparison silver was up 70% and other precious metals and commodity funds performed much better.

3) The unemployment rate will continue to hover around 10% in 2010. Although some economists are forecasting a significant improvement in the employment landscape, I don't see this occurring. Things won't get much worse, but I don't think things get much better.

A
The number has ranged between 9.60% and 9.90% all year.

4) Apple will release its tablet computer in early 2010 and it will truly revolutionize the landscape in technology. Before the end of the year multiple companies with release products with striking resemblance to the Apple tablet, resembling the smartphone trend following the release of the iPhone.

A+
The iPad has been a massive success and numerous companies have already attempted to copy it. Over 7,500,000 were sold in the first 6 months alone.

5) The potential legalization of Marijuana will become one of the most hotly debated issues of 2010. Fiscal budget deficits will require that state legislators consider all options to increase revenue. Multiple states will pass legislation that either legalizes small does or decriminalizes possession.

B+
In 2010, Proposition 19, titled the "Regulate, Control, and Tax Cannabis Act of 2010", qualified for the November California ballot. Other states have implemented or discussed additional medical marijuana or other laws due to pressure on the budget and pressure from citizens.

6) Amazon which is riding high with the success of the Kindle eReader will encounter a difficult 2010 as the consumer closes their wallets and the Kindle faces stiff competition from the Barnes and Noble Nook, the Sony eReader, and the Apple Tablet.

A-
The company has never released sales figures but the Kindle marketplace is now on the iPhone and iPad so my belief is that the sales of the device are slowing. Apple stock was up 50% this year versus Amazon which was up 30%.

7) Twitter was the social media darling of 2009. I do not believe 2010 will be as kind to the the site of the tweet. Whether from increased competition or from the lack of a sustainable revenue model, I do not believe the site will have a successful year and will spend much less time in the news.

B+
Facebook is putting more focus on the type of status updates that Twitter is based around. Twitter is still extremely relevant but the competition is growing.

8) The recent rally in the stock market has many thinking that the worst has passed and the good times are here to stay. I believe that we are in for trouble in 2010 in the form of a consumer who stays in savings mode, a commercial real estate market teetering on the edge, and a government support system that cannot continue indefinitely. I believe the market will fall 5% for the year with many violent swings. The best place to invest will be large cap companies who generate a good portion of their sales abroad (McDonald's, Coke, ect.).

B-
The major market averages were up 10-15% this year but the swings were violent. Down 7% in August and up 8% in September. Coke was up 23% and McDonald's was up 16%.

9) The United States will become soccer crazy during the summer. I'm envisioning Michael Phelps like hysteria towards our national soccer team during the World Cup in South Africa.

A
The US made a great run that ended in disappointment but the enthusiasm was off the charts: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbn3rOPmR9w&safety_mode=true&persist_safety_mode=1

10) 2010 will be the year of 3D. More movies will be released in 3D and at-home-TV sets will begin to hit store shelves that are capable of handling 3D content. This will mark the start of a long term trend in media programming.

A
Most major Television companies are rolling out 3D capable sets and there are no signs that it will slow down.

I will be positing 11 predictions for 2011 right after the New Years.

Have a great holiday.

WordLens

2010-12-20T07:44:00.001-05:00

200 Countries, 200 Years

2010-12-13T05:17:00.000-05:00

One of the most interesting videos I have seen recently:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbkSRLYSojo&feature=player_embedded&safety_mode=true&persist_safety_mode=1

Hedge Fund Republic

2010-12-08T06:30:00.000-05:00

The NY Times with a very interesting article on income inequality:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/18/opinion/18kristof.html?_r=2&src=me&ref=homepage

Invading the Classroom

2010-12-06T06:54:00.002-05:00

Hand-held devices and educational clickers to engage students are invading the classroom:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/16/education/16clickers.html?src=me&ref=general

The Wealth Divide

2010-12-03T06:38:00.000-05:00

Any time anyone tries to tell you that tax cuts for the wealth trickle down or that stock market appreciation is good for all Americans, remind them that:

http://multinationalmonitor.org/mm2003/03may/may03interviewswolff.html

iPhones For Toddlers

2010-12-01T06:26:00.000-05:00

What is the favorite toy of some toddlers? Would you believe it's an iPhone?

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/17/fashion/17TODDLERS.html?_r=1&src=me&ref=homepage

Mars...With a Catch

2010-11-29T06:45:00.001-05:00

A trip to Mars with a bit of a catch...It's a ONE-WAY TICKET:

http://news.discovery.com/space/human-space-settlement-mars.html

Buy a Truck, Get an AK-47

2010-11-22T07:02:00.000-05:00

Only in America...:

http://www.boston.com/news/odd/articles/2010/11/15/fla_dealership_offers_free_ak_47_for_truck_buyers/?p1=Upbox_links

Salad Stats

2010-11-19T06:06:00.000-05:00

Ever wanted more info on those leefy greens you consume. Well here you go:

http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/salad-stats-11102010/?display=wide

Balance the Budget??

2010-11-17T06:45:00.000-05:00

The NY Times has a new interactive feature that challenges you to balance the budget:

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2010/11/13/weekinreview/deficits-graphic.html

100,000,000 Calls

2010-11-15T06:31:00.001-05:00

The phone number 311 in NYC is intended in part to divert routine inquiries and non-urgent community concerns from the emergency 9-1-1 number. Dialing this number allows city residents to obtain important non-emergency services through a central, all-purpose phone number quickly and effectively.

What happens when all this data gets analyzed? One of the most interesting articles I have ever seen is the result:

http://www.wired.com/magazine/2010/11/ff_311_new_york/all/1

Democrats Lost More Seats in Districts With Better Economies???

2010-11-12T06:55:00.000-05:00

From the Wall Street Journal:

http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2010/11/03/democrats-lost-more-seats-in-districts-with-better-economies/

Government Gridlock, Investigations and Shutdown

2010-11-10T06:50:00.000-05:00

From the Huffington Post:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bob-cesca/angry-voters-choose-gover_b_778652.html

How Obama Saved Capitalism and Lost the Midterms

2010-11-08T06:47:00.000-05:00

From the New York Times:

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/11/02/how-obama-saved-capitalism-and-lost-the-midterms/?partner=rss&emc=rss

3 Years in 3 Minutes

2010-11-05T05:37:00.000-04:00

Time lapse photography doesn't get more epic than this video of the destruction of the EDF Tower and the construction of the Sequana Tower on its place. It took three years to make, summarized in three minutes in this video.

It all started on January 2007, when Parisian videographer Ramon captured the first image of the demolition work at Tour EDF. 45,000 photographs later, taken from exactly the same point with his Pentax K 110D DSLR, his work was done and a new building was in place. It was September 2010, three years later. That's an average of 42 images per day.

3 Years At The Same Place from Ramon on Vimeo.

Entertainment

2010-11-03T06:31:00.000-04:00

Arianna Huffington the founder of the Huffington Post was on Bill Maher's show last month and said something that really resonated with me:

"Self expression is the new entertainment"

In the era of Facebook and Twitter, it is truly amazing how much free time is spent admiring and analyzing others lives. Maybe it is wrong, maybe it is weird, and maybe it is dangerous, but it is quite the trend and I don't see it abating.

No matter what you think of it, it is unbelievable how anyone can be at the same time a director, producer, and studio head of their own movie from the palm of their hand using an iPhone, while their seamlessly upload it for millions to see...

3D-Printing

2010-11-01T06:41:00.002-04:00

What the future holds for printing:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/14/technology/14print.html?_r=1&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1285065631-QcAulHL9BkYtEV0N19dC3g

Family Films Are Sexist???

2010-10-29T06:55:00.005-04:00

Newsweek recently approached the issue of family films and came to the conclusion that they are sexist in nature:

http://www.newsweek.com/2010/09/22/why-family-films-are-so-sexist.html

Commitment to Green

2010-10-27T06:40:00.001-04:00

Thomas Friedman on the Chinese commitment to green energy and its ramification for the future:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/19/opinion/19friedman.html

Religious Knowledge

2010-10-25T14:48:00.003-04:00

How much do American citizens know about religion? Not much:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_rel_religious_literacy_poll

A Generation of Nincompoops?

2010-10-22T06:37:00.000-04:00

Quite the article title from the Boston Globe:

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2010/09/27/are_we_raising_a_generation_of_nincompoops/?s_campaign=8315

Political Beliefs

2010-10-20T07:02:00.001-04:00

With the mid-term elections upon us, I thought the following quiz was extremely interesting and really easy to take. It takes less than 5 minutes and in 10 easy questions it shows where you stand on the political spectrum:

http://www.theadvocates.org/quiz

Thanks to Al for the link.

Female PHDs

2010-10-18T07:02:00.000-04:00

For the first time, more women than men in the United States received doctoral degrees last year, the culmination of decades of change in the status of women at colleges nationwide.

The number of women at every level of academia has been rising for decades. Women now hold a nearly 3-to-2 majority in undergraduate and graduate education. Doctoral study was the last holdout - the only remaining area of higher education that still had an enduring male majority.

Of the doctoral degrees awarded in the 2008-09 academic year, 28,962 went to women and 28,469 to men, according to an annual enrollment report from the Council of Graduate Schools, based in Washington.

Doctoral degrees, which require an average of seven years' study, are typically the last to show the impact of long-term changes. "It is a trend that has been snaking its way through the educational pipeline," said Nathan Bell, the report's author and the director of research and policy analysis for the council. "It was bound to happen."

The whole article is well worth the read: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/09/13/AR2010091306555.html

Dollar Re-Design

2010-10-15T06:27:00.000-04:00

Do you think our currency is in need of a re-design? If you do, you have some company, and here are some of their ideas:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/huffpost/721294

100 Years

2010-10-13T06:41:00.009-04:00

What a difference a century makes!

One hundred years ago in 1910:

- The average life expectancy for men was 47 years.

- Only 14 percent of homes had a bathtub.

- Only 8 percent of homes had a telephone.

- There were only 8,000 cars and only 144 miles of paved roads.

- The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.

- The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower!

- The average US wage was 22 cents per hour.

- The average US worker made between $200 and $400 per year.

- A competent accountant could expect to earn $2000 per year,

- A dentist $2,500 per year, a veterinarian between $1,500 and $4,000 per year, and a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.

- More than 95 percent of all births took place at HOME.

- Ninety percent of all Doctors had NO COLLEGE EDUCATION!

- Sugar cost four cents a pound.

- Eggs were fourteen cents a dozen.

- Most women only washed their hair once a month, and used Borax or egg yolks for shampoo.

- The American flag had 45 stars.

- Crossword puzzles, canned beer, and iced tea hadn't been invented yet.

- There was no Mother's Day or Father's Day.

- Only 6 percent of all Americans had graduated from high school.

- Marijuana, heroin, and morphine were all available over the counter at the local corner drugstores.

- Eighteen percent of households had at least one full-time servant or domestic help.

- There were about 230 reported murders across all of America.

- The population of Las Vegas , Nevada , was only 30!

What will the world be like 100 years from today???

The Back to School Economy

2010-10-11T06:54:00.000-04:00

Have you ever wondered about the economic impact of the back to school shopping season:

http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2010/09/the-back-to-school-economy/

How Americans Perceive the Distribution of Wealth

2010-10-08T07:04:00.000-04:00

Americans have a really distorted view of how wealth is distributed in this country:

The top row shows the actual distribution of wealth in America. The richest 20 percent, represented by that blue line, has about 85 percent of the wealth. The next richest 20 percent, represented by that red line, has about 10 percent of the wealth. And the remaining three-fifths of America shares a tiny sliver of the country's wealth.

Below that, the "Estimated" rows show how different groups think wealth is distributed. As you can see, in people's misinformed minds things are much more equitable.

From: http://www.good.is/post/americans-are-horribly-misinformed-about-who-has-money/

Downhill

2010-10-06T07:24:00.000-04:00

From Paul Krugman @ the New York Times:

On Thursday, House Republicans released their “Pledge to America,” supposedly outlining their policy agenda. In essence, what they say is, “Deficits are a terrible thing. Let’s make them much bigger.” The document repeatedly condemns federal debt — 16 times, by my count. But the main substantive policy proposal is to make the Bush tax cuts permanent, which independent estimates say would add about $3.7 trillion to the debt over the next decade — about $700 billion more than the Obama administration’s tax proposals.

True, the document talks about the need to cut spending. But as far as I can see, there’s only one specific cut proposed — canceling the rest of the Troubled Asset Relief Program, which Republicans claim (implausibly) would save $16 billion. That’s less than half of 1 percent of the budget cost of those tax cuts. As for the rest, everything must be cut, in ways not specified — “except for common-sense exceptions for seniors, veterans, and our troops.” In other words, Social Security, Medicare and the defense budget are off-limits.

So what’s left? Howard Gleckman of the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center has done the math. As he points out, the only way to balance the budget by 2020, while simultaneously (a) making the Bush tax cuts permanent and (b) protecting all the programs Republicans say they won’t cut, is to completely abolish the rest of the federal government: “No more national parks, no more Small Business Administration loans, no more export subsidies, no more N.I.H. No more Medicaid (one-third of its budget pays for long-term care for our parents and others with disabilities). No more child health or child nutrition programs. No more highway construction. No more homeland security. Oh, and no more Congress.”

Read the whole article here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/24/opinion/24krugman.html?_r=1

The App Store

2010-10-04T07:20:00.003-04:00

Just a short time ago, Apple announced that it is making some changes to the App Store review process, and among the changes is publication of the company's App Store Review Guidelines. Apple has received some criticism regarding their policy of rejecting apps, but I believe this recent response by Apple explains why they approach the approval process the way they do:

- "We have lots of kids downloading lots of apps, and parental controls don't work unless the parents set them up (many don't). So know that we're keeping an eye out for the kids."

- "We have over 250,000 apps in the App Store. We don't need any more Fart apps."

- "We have lots of serious developers who don't want their quality Apps to be surrounded by amateur hour."

- "If your app is rejected, we have a Review Board that you can appeal to. If you run to the press and trash us, it never helps."

- "This is a living document, and new apps presenting new questions may result in new rules at any time. Perhaps your app will trigger this."

- "If it sounds like we're control freaks, well, maybe it's because we're so committed to our users and making sure they have a quality experience with our products."

Their approach may be seen as aggressive, but in a world where people are worried about security, parents are worried about their kids, and we are all transmitting very private information over cell phones, I have to say I find their approach admirable and a sound business strategy.

From: http://www.macrumors.com/2010/09/09/apples-app-store-review-guidelines-offer-remarkably-candid-view-of-app-store-philosophy/

Powering Flight

2010-10-01T06:41:00.001-04:00

An amazing video about the perseverance of a Toronto Graduate student in pursuit of a plane that is powered by your feet:

Spell Check??

2010-09-29T06:34:00.003-04:00

A Indiana billboard misspelling has the nation giggling. The billboard in South Bend was intended to show how marvellous the schools were in their city, but as you can see below, the billboard conveyed a very different message.

It's amazing how important one letter can be...

Economic Fix

2010-09-27T07:23:00.002-04:00

From Barry Ritholtz of The Big Picture Blog, comes 7 ways to fix the economy:

1) One Year Payroll Tax Holiday: Want to increase job creation and reduce unemployment? Tax it less. A 12 month employer FICA holiday will encourage job creation.

How to pay for it: Raising both the retirement age and the cap on FICA contributions.

2) Capital Investment 1 year 100% Deduction: The administration has already proposed a variation on this. It was an effective tax credit when done in 2004-05, but the drawback was it encouraged CapEx over new hiring. The idea of the payroll tax holiday is that it prevents that drawback.

How to pay for it: Via gains from the Corporate Tax-Free Repatriation (#3)

3) Corporate Tax-Free Repatriation: US corporations are sitting on trillions of dollars of cash in their overseas divisions. A one year tax holiday to bring that back to the US. It can be structured in tiers (0%, 5%, 10%). The goal should be to bring to the US a trillion plus in overseas profits.

How to pay for it: Its free; These are overseas revenues that are untaxed by the US.

4) Pure Science R&D Program for Alternative Energy: Gains in the basic science of solar energy conversion, battery storage, alternative biofuels, etc has been incremental. The private sector does not patience for multi-year or basic science R&D.

How to pay for it: Via a Pigouvian tax on gasoline, phased in over 5 or 10 years.

5) Mortgage Principal Write Down Plan: Buyers paid too much, banks lent too much against residences at the top of the RE cycle. To get the sector healthy again requires prices to normalize, which is now occurring thru Foreclosure. An alternative is a voluntary principal write-down, where both the borrower and lender split the losses. An underwater home is refinanced at its 2011 appraisal value, with the mortgage shortfall rolled into a 10 year interest free balloon payment. Banks cut the balloon loan in half in year 10, rolling it into the existing mortgage (assuming the owner stays current on mortgage).

How to pay for it: There is no costs, but Congress would need to make the 10 year zero interest free tax free, and permission the banks to defer reserving for eventual balloon defaults for the same 10 year period.

6) Electrical Grid Refurbishment: This is both an economic and national security issue: The electrical grid is an unreliable mishmash of public and private ownership, vulnerable to both blackouts and cyber-attacks. It needs to be upgraded yesterday.

How to pay for it: A one cent per kilowatt hour grid tax.

7) Airports, Ports, Roads, Bridges, Tunnels: The US was one of the first nations to build out a massive interstate highway system. We love big construction projects, but we seem to dislike the maintenance. Most of the transportation grid in the US is falling apart, in need of a massive repair. Many US airports look like they are from 3rd world countries.

How to pay for it: Usage tolls on roads, ports, bridges, landing slots.

From: http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2010/09/economic-stimulus-try-these-7-ideas/

$700 Wallet

2010-09-24T06:58:00.001-04:00

From: http://www.luxist.com/2010/09/15/dunhills-biometric-wallet/

The wallet has traditionally been a low-tech device but not anymore as biometrics is changing the way we carry money. Dunhill has come out with their own version of the Biometric Wallet that promises to keep your money, id, and credit cards safe from thieves even if they pick your pocket. A carbon fiber exterior keeps things light but unbreakable while a biometric finger-print lock keeps the contents under wraps to all but the owner. And for even more high-tech protection you can connect the wallet to your cell phone via Bluetooth and get an alert if the wallet finds itself too far for comfort (i.e. you've been robbed or dropped it somewhere).

The Cost of Being an NFL Fan

2010-09-22T06:13:00.001-04:00

Great infographic that displays the cost of being an NFL and how it has risen over time:

http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/nfl-tickets-2010-083010/?display=wide

S&P Best and Worst

2010-09-20T06:55:00.001-04:00

A very interesting look at your portfolio's performance if you remove the 10 best & 10 worst single days of trading:

http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2010/09/missing-best-worst-days-of-sp500/

Links

2010-09-17T05:16:00.001-04:00

The Future of Transportation in China: http://www.google.com/search?q=straddling+bus&rls=com.microsoft:*:IE-SearchBox&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=ie7&rlz=1I7ADBF_en&safe=active

Historical Facebook Status: http://coolmaterial.com/roundup/if-historical-events-had-facebook-statuses/

The $300 Basketball Shoe: http://www.cnbc.com/id/39064018

The Economy...

2010-09-15T06:10:00.003-04:00

NY Times: How to End the Great Recession

Newsweek: Young Adults Investing Cautiously

Slate: The Gender Pay Gap

Out of Control Cost

2010-09-13T06:48:00.020-04:00

This following chart shows the cost of college tuition compared to historical housing prices and the Consumer Price Index (CPI). The CPI is designed to track our cost of living by estimating the average price of consumer goods and services purchased by households. Everything was normalized to 100 starting in 1978:

Here is a chart comparing the ridiculous rise in the cost private 4-year colleges versus the also rediculious rise in medical cost versus the CPI:

From: http://www.mymoneyblog.com/charts-college-tuition-vs-housing-bubble-vs-medical-costs.html